Working For Wonka
by lemon love child
Summary: Sydney was just looking for a job. When she finds one at Wonka's on Cherry Street and meets the famous chocolatier, she finds him to be a little different than she had expected. DeppWonka - Will remain incomplete by OA. If someone wants it from here do so
1. The Broom Closet

_Author's Note: I'm not giving any disclaimers. Though this is a work in progress, I intend to keep it non-Mary Sue-ish, but it may, every so often, lean that direction. Also, I tried to keep Sydney as unlike me as possible, but we'll see what happens. Kay?_

_On a different note entirely, this fic needs a title. If anyone can think of one appropriate enough, please do send forth your suggestions. :-)_

_Additionally, this whole fic was based on one picture. if your interest has been piqued, it can be viewed http/img394.imageshack.us/my.php?image195mr.jpg there.  
_

_P.S. visit my site! http/thefactory. anyhoo, on with the fic!_

**Chapter One - Broom Closet**

Sydney rocked back on her heels, exhaling deeply. It felt, to her, as if she had been waiting for days, even though it had only been about half an hour.

_I hate interviews so much_, she thought, her heart pounding. Her past job was one she had had since she was fifteen, and she could hardly even remember that interview. Three years, four managers, and a fire later, she decided that her time at the bakery was over.

When she had heard that Wonka's was hiring, she did not hesitate to head over to the little corner shop on Cherry Street. At the very least, Sydney hoped to finally catch a glimpse of the one that many people called one of the greatest chocolatiers to ever live. Wonka made her favorite chocolate bar of all time - his original milk chocolate mixture. There was something to it that just made her so euphoric, as if nothing in the world was wrong.

When Sydney had first stepped into the little shop just that afternoon, the first thing that hit her was the wonderful, sweet, smooth aroma of melting chocolate. The second thing that hit her was the small child running across the store at a very high rate of speed.

Without thinking, Sydney quickly grabbed at the child in order to keep it from falling backwards.

"Are you okay?" Sydney asked, releasing her grip once she was certain that the child was in no danger of falling.

"Sorry!" the little boy gave a sheepish grin, and took off again, except this time out the door.

Sydney couldn't help but chuckle a bit, shaking her head and walking towards the front counter.

"Welcome to Wonka's, miss! Might I interest you in our newest creation - the Whipple-Scrumptious Fudgemallow Delight?" The old man behind the counter was beaming widely at her, and she couldn't help but grin back.

"No thank you, Joe," she replied, having read his nametag. "I was just stopping in about the job."

Joe stopped and pondered a second. "Mr. Wonka had asked me to let anyone that was interested know that they would be given interviews at closing time." He glanced up at the clock on the wall. "We'll be closing in half an hour, so if you would prefer to wait, you're more than welcome to do so."

Sydney glanced around, suddenly quite nervous. "Um..out of curiosity, how many people have asked yet?"

"Just you, miss." At this news, she breathed a small sigh of relief, but she was still nervous about the whole thing.

A half an hour had passed, and the last customer had been checked out. The shelves were mostly bare at that point, so Sydney noticed. When Joe summoned her, her heart began racing even faster than before.

He opened the counter door for her and motioned for her to enter. She did so, taking very careful steps. He led her into the back of the shop, where the machines were still working busily to keep up with the very high demand of Wonka's magic chocolate.

Very suddenly, Joe came to a halt, causing poor Sydney to nearly crash into the old man. This caused him to chuckle a bit.

"Very sorry. Almost missed the door." The door he stopped at had a sign on the door reading "Broom Closet." The girl peered at it in confusion, but Joe waved his hand in a dismissive fashion.

"Mr. Wonka recently moved his office, and we have yet to change the sign." He took a moment to study the sign, but soon turned to face Sydney.

"Well, he's in there. I wish you the best of luck." A genuine grin crossed his face, and as he stepped past her towards the front lobby, he gave her an encouraging pat on the back.

Sydney turned to face the door, gazing at the sign. She closed her eyes momentarily and took a very deep breath. She turned the handle and pulled the door open. Almost immediately, six or seven large brooms felt it necessary to fall onto the girl, knocking her to the floor with a loud shriek.

"Miss?" a quiet voice she did not recognize asked, full of confusion. However, Sydney was mildly preoccupied, having just had six or seven large brooms fall upon her. She was wrestling with them, attempting to literally get them out of her hair.

"Uh..miss?" the voice asked again. Sydney finally gave one last tug and a toss, and she was free of her dustpan prison. Collecting herself off the ground, she stood and dusted herself off. It was only at that point that she noticed the boy standing next to her.

"Oh!" She gave a little yelp of surprise, attempting to make herself as presentable as possible as quickly as she could. The boy appeared as if he were trying to hide a smile, though not terribly well.

"You missed a spot. There." With one red-gloved hand, the boy reached out and pointed to a point on her left shoulder, and indeed, she had missed that spot. Blushing slightly, she quickly brushed away the leftover dust from the broom assault.

"Thank you." She paused momentarily. "Um.. you wouldn't happen to know where I may find Mr. Wonka, would you? Joe brought me here, but it was a broom closet."

"Of course it was a broom closet, silly! Wasn't the door labeled as such?" The boy grinned, standing all his weight on one leg with his hands on his hips.

"Well, yes, but..." she trailed off, unable to think of anything to make her situation a little less silly sounding.

"It's okay. I told him to bring you to the broom closet." The boy giggled a bit.

"That wasn't very nice of you. What would Mr. Wonka say if he..." Then it all clicked.

"Are you Mr. Wonka?" she asked hesitantly, sizing up the boy in front of her. He was thin, but in more of that awkward way that many teenaged boys tend to be. His clothes were all very richly-colored in deep reds and purples that would put many tropical birds to shame. The color of his skin caused her to immediately liken him to a porcelain doll, with his dark hair contrasting sharply to his dramatically pale skin.

His eyes were what caught and held her attention so well. They were a deep, regal violet - so unusually colored, she thought. Despite his young-looking face, his eyes revealed, to some miniscule degree, a startling revelation, though Sydney could not place it exactly.

"Willy Wonka, the amazing chocolatier, at your service miss," he said in a conceited tone of voice. With a great, exaggerated flourish, he removed the hat from his head and gave a deep bow.

"Sydney Philips," she introduced herself, her voice much less tenacious than the former. She gave a little curtsey, but nothing to compare to the boy's.

At that point, her mouth decided to start going when her brain refused. "Though I must admit, I was expecting someone a little bit..." she stopped, realizing her gaff.

Wonka placed the hat back on his head and returned it to its perfect angle once again.

"Older?"


	2. Introducing Swudge

_Wow! I just cannot believe how many great reviews I've gotten. Initially, I was almost terrified to put anything up here. I've been writing for nearly ten years, but I've never built up the courage enough to post anything for people to actually read. Anyway, I can't thank you all enough for being so cool about everything._

_Yes, I realize that the links on the last chapter were not working. I'm still learning this thingie, and I hope we'll be learning together. Both the links are in my profile to save from any more annoyances like that._

_This chapter, I feel, is much less interesting than the previous chapter. I was actually paid to write this chapter. By that, I mean that I wrote it in little bits and pieces at work. So to make a long story short, I'm less pleased with this chapter than I ought to be._

_Anyway, on with chapter two._

****

Chapter Two - Introducing Swudge

Sydney opened her mouth to correct him, but there was no word that she could think of that would make the situation seem less awkward.

"Yeah. Older," she said hesitantly, inwardly punching herself mercilessly.

_Stupid girl. There goes your job, _she thought amidst her psychological smack-down.

Where she had expected an annoyed frown from Mr. Wonka, she received a grin that was mostly genuine, but slightly forced. She hoped that wasn't a bad sign.

"D'ya think I ought to get a cane?" He quickly arranged himself into a pose, holding an imaginary cane.

"A candy cane," she said quietly, never intending for her hopeful future employer to hear.

"Boy, what a terrific idea!" His hand rose from the imaginary cane to tap the side of his nose, as if to seal the idea within his brain. "A candy cane...practical as well as a clever pun...it would only have been better if I had thought of it.." he muttered, trailing off.

The pair stood there, surrounded by brooms. It was still rather awkward.

"Well...um..." Sydney said quietly, trying to keep the conversation moving.

With her odd stammering, Wonka seemed to suddenly break from his train of thought. Deep violet eyes met light blues, and he spun on his heels and began to walk away.

"Come come, far too much to do with so few hours in the day to do it all," he called to her. His strides were long and quick, and short little Sydney found herself nearly jogging to keep up with the tall, long-legged boy. Where his movements were sure and deft, hers were graceless. She nearly tripped over assorted things on the floor a number of times.

"Ah, here we are," Wonka said with a pleased tone of voice. He came to a very sudden halt, and for the second time in one day, Sydney nearly plowed into the one leading. She peered around his shoulder, and found that they were in front of a very intricately carved door.

There was a jangling of keys, followed by a little shuffle and then a pair of soft clicks as the door was unlocked and opened in quick succession.

"Welcome to my office, Sydney Philips. Please have a seat anywhere," he instructed her, flipping on the light and making his way across the room.

The whole office was decorated in hues of red, purple, and brown. The wonderfully plush carpet was a deep crimson, and she found her steps giving more of a bounce as she walked on it. The ceiling was high, with a beautiful chandelier hanging precariously from a wire, its many hues reflecting the gently colored light around the room.

Sydney sat in a great big squishy plum-colored chair on one side of a lovely mahogany desk. On the desk were scattered papers and writing utensils, as well as a potted plant of some kind that resembled some of the greenest grass Sydney had ever seen. She glanced up and saw Wonka on the far side of the room, behind a matte finish dark brown bar. He was busily mixing something and humming.

"Aren't you a bit young to own a bar?" she asked, feeling rather presumptuous as she did.

"Don't worry, it's a chocolate bar!" he replied readily with a high giggle, as if he had been waiting for some time for her to ask.

_I should have known,_ Sydney thought to herself.

"And please, have some swudge," Wonka offered, stepping from behind the bar with two cups. "It's so delightful, you must try some."

"Some _what?_" Sydney asked, thoroughly befuddled by the choice of words that had reached her ears.

"My lovely swudge. It's still in experimental stages, so if it turns your ears green and you speak Swahili for the next six weeks, I do apologize in advance," he explained nothing in particular, making his way towards the desk and having a seat in the chair behind the desk. He placed one of the cups in front of Sydney, then set one down in front of himself, then promptly plucked a blade of the grass and offered it to his guest.

"Swudge, my dear?"

Still very confused, she accepted it. Wonka seemed to be waiting for her to do something with it, but she was unsure. As if to demonstrate, he bit down on something invisible multiple times, his perfect white teeth clicking together quietly.

Hesitantly, she lifted the swudge to her mouth and set it on her tongue. Almost instantly, it melted away onto her tongue to a soft mintiness, much like a bit of cotton candy.

"It's wonderful," Sydney said, smiling. "But I'm wondering..is it a plant or is it candy?"

"It's a candy plant!" He answered readily again, beaming. "I haven't been able to get the kinks out...the darn thing won't produce seeds yet. So it isn't quite ready for cultivation."

"And I suppose the chandelier is made of sugar," Sydney said, half-jokingly, glancing momentarily up towards the extravagant chandelier dangling from the high ceiling. However, Wonka gave her a very strange look.

"You really think so? I don't think it would taste very good at all. Probably quite dusty." The young chocolatier lifted the cup from the desk to his lips and took a sip.

"Anyhoo, shall we begin the interview?" he asked in an unusually professional tone of voice, setting the cup down in front of him.

Sydney inhaled deeply as if mentally preparing herself. She was not that naive though - she was well aware that there was nothing that she could even possibly do to prepare herself for what awaited.

He grabbed one of the randomly scattered pens across his desk and did what he could to straighten out the papers just as randomly scattered.

"I expect this not to take too long..I am a very busy person after all," he said in that same conceited tone as before. Without pausing a moment, he drew a large tic-tac-toe board across one of the papers marked 'Extremely Important' and marked an X in the upper right hand corner.

"Your move," Wonka said, sliding the paper and pen across to the now quite confused Sydney.

"But I thought.."

"Poppycock. Nothing soothes the nerves like a good game of tic-tac-toe."

She hesitated a few moments before lifting the pen and marking an O in one of the boxes, then sliding the paper and pen back.

"Do you shower in the morning or the evening, Sydney Philips?" X.

"Evening, Mr. Wonka." O.

"Do you bite your nails?" X.

"I try not to." O.

"Orange juice or apple juice?" X.

"Orange. With the pulp." O.

"I win." His last X was placed in the lower right hand box, and, with a grand flourish, he drew a line through the three X's in a row.

"So you do," Sydney said, leaning back slightly in the chair.

"And you have a job, Miss Philips. And you didn't drink your chocolate. And I told you tic-tac-toe calmed the nerves."


	3. Thoughts Most Peculiar

_My sincerest apologies about the long wait between chapters. School and other assorted nonsense has been taking up most of my time as of late, and unfortunately that seems to come first. However, here is another chapter - a bit shorter than the rest and much slower than I had intended, but I promise that what is missing from this one will be added to the next, and shall accrue interest. This chapter is mostly getting into Sydney's brain as well as setting up stuff for later, though it doesn't start out that way._

_So, read this chapter, then visit my site - it's in my profile. :)_

_Much love from me._

**Chapter Three - Thoughts Most Peculiar**

While she was walking out the door, all her assorted legal papers in hand, she was rather bewildered.

_He called _that _an interview? If they were only all like that.._ she mused, turning and walking towards her apartment.

Willy was also bewildered, but for different reasons. He had been fiddling with the formula for a new type of hard candy since he had shooed Sydney out of the shop after the interview. For some reason, he could not keep the different fruit flavors from mixing together rather than stay perfectly apart.

He had shed his maroon coat and his hat, but the gloves stayed, as they always did.   
Wonka stood and stared at the candy in a manner reminiscent to a parent staring at a misbehaving child. He made a mental note of its size (about the size of a dinner plate), relative shape (assymetrical, rather wonky looking), and how the different colors were melting together (something they ought not to be doing!).

He exhaled deeply and rubbed at his eyes. To anyone watching, he would have suddenly looked like your average sleep-deprived seventeen year old, despite the most unusual of settings. Wonka had relocated to his Inventing Room/Meeting Room after the most unusual of interviews. Glancing up at the clock, he did not even bother to stifle a yawn - it was nearly eleven o'clock.

Efficiently, he cleaned up the mess he had made whilst fiddling about with the recipe. Gathering up his coat and hat, he stepped out of the room and into the main manufacturing hall. The machines were still humming busily - it was the only way to satiate the whole world's craving for Wonka's famous chocolate.

Wonka gazed at them momentarily, filled with a sudden sense of pride. Everyone in the building had long gone, and yet the machines were still going, fully automated and capable of working on their own until morning came.

He yawned again, walking towards a door marked "Stairs." Shoving the door open, he trudged up the two flights of stairs, his boots clicking on the hard floor. He hummed quietly, making his way towards an unusually plain door.

"Ahh...home again," he said absently, as if he had been far and away for a very long while.

A gloved hand turned the dull brass handle and pushed. To anyone who knew Willy Wonka, this room would utterly shock them. Its walls were a drab beige. The flooring was hardwood and not the shiny lovely kind either. There was a bed in one corner, a work desk in another, and a bookshelf and chair in the last. A rather tacky painting of a pheasant hung above the bed. It was quite possibly one of the most boring rooms that anyone could possibly ever step into.

Willy gave a groan, gazing around the room in apparent disgust.

"What a horrid choice for today," he sighed, removing his hat and tossing it haphazardly on the chair.

---

Sydney sat in her favorite chair at home, snuggled up under a big warm comforter with her favorite book - The Hobbit. To anyone who knew Sydney Philips, this room would hardly be any surprise whatsoever. The walls were a drab beige, with the unlovely kind of hardwood. The room itself was very plainly decorated, with nothing but a bed and chair in one corner, a work desk in another, and a bookshelf in the last. The only thing that could be even remotely interesting to look at was the painting of a pheasant above the bed.

Sydney had been trying to read for a few hours, but found herself unable to focus her thoughts on the book. Her thoughts were too scattered on the events of the afternoon. It was most peculiar, she determined, that her preference of orange juice over apple juice should decide whether she was an able employee or not. Wonka had not even glanced at her credentials or references. He just told her that she would be making candy and then shooed her out the door.

Wonka himself was most peculiar, she also determined. His mannerisms and character seemed so far away from most boys his age. His actions made him seem older than his face would betray, but she knew that he could not be older than she was. At nineteen, she too looked and felt older than she was. She had been on her own since seventeen, and had always been able and determined. Sydney had only faltered once, when the fire at the bakery nearly put her out of work. Since then, she was more than capable of carrying on.

Sydney assumed that Wonka was similar to her in that sense, but the store on Cherry Street had been open for almost two years. The thought of it shocked her.

_Wonka could not have been any older than sixteen years old then,_ she considered, rather taken aback by her discovery.

Sydney gave a deep sigh and closed her book on her lap. She ran a hand through her light red hair and glanced at the clock. She gave a quiet groan. Eleven o'clock at night was never her favorite time of evening. Too late to get a good thorough night's sleep, yet too early to be really tired.

She pulled the comforter off and tossed it to the bed, rising to return the worn book to its rightful location on the bookshelf. She paused at the shelves, running her fingers along the titles.

_All the people in my books get to have great adventures,_ she pondered. _Maybe it's my turn for an adventure._

---

"That's the only problem with Changing Rooms...occasionally they change to something you don't want," Willy muttered to no one but himself, still quite disgusted by the room's dullness. He had taken a shower, and was preparing his toothbrush.

The bathroom attached to the bedroom was equally as boring. The floor was a cream colored tile that climbed the walls halfway. The rest of the wall was painted a blase shade of green. His entire living quarters was just plain blah.

_How could anyone _stand _living in a place like this for long? Ridiculous, really,_ he thought while brushing his teeth in neat little circles as he had for years.

He finished up, and then purposely did not grab for the floss. Instead, he rather glared at it triumphantly, as if he had overcome some sort of obstacle - something he did twice a day, every day.

"Ahhh...at least the bed is nice," he muttered, climbing into bed. Once he was suitably comfortable, he clapped twice loudly, plunging his whole world into darkness.


	4. Stunning Indeed

**Chapter Four - Stunning Indeed**

It was the worst sound that Sydney had ever heard in her entire life. A mix between a shrill ringing and a buzzing, it did nothing but enrage her. Her eyes snapped open and she smacked the alarm clock next to her head. Unfortunately for her hand, she was rather unaware of how hard she smacked the alarm. Twice as unfortunate was the sheer fact that the alarm seemed rather unfazed by the assault.

Sydney cried out in a mixture of pain and frustration, and made a second attempt at turning off the accursed device; her attempt was successful this time around. She clapped twice loudly and cursed yet again as the room was flooded with light, her eyes unable to adjust quickly enough to avoid pain.

_Oh, I can see where _this _day is going so far..._ she thought, grumbling inwardly. Sydney threw off the covers and sat up, her feet hitting the cold floor. She stared for just a moment, then rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Thinking twice, she realized that today was her first day at Wonka's Candies. She was immediately much more awake, actually reading the clock again. _7:00. Tons of time._

Sydney moseyed on over to the bathroom, flipping on the light. She had actually gotten used to that horrid shade of green, and was somewhat growing fonder of it each day. At least it made her smile now instead of want to throw up.

To her, showers were easily the best parts of the day. She always took full advantage of the alone time by singing loudly and out of tune. She was only fairly certain that her neighbors were unable to hear her.

Willy Wonka rather enjoyed showers as well. It was _his_ time, where he could stop and think about anything. His thoughts, surprisingly enough, were not just about work. He felt that he could reflect upon events better there. Of course, it was not unusual for the employees at Wonka's Candies to see their boss come flying down the stairs, dripping wet and only semi-dressed, just to retreat to his Inventing Room/Meeting Room and spend the day there.

This was not one of those days, which was unfortunate for his few female workers.

Willy took a long, leisurely shower that morning. It was rare to hear him singing in the shower. This was one of those days.

"Good morning, staaaarshiiiiine...the earth says hello!" he belted out, slightly off-key.

"You twinkle aboooove us...we twinkle belooooooow..." he continued, shutting off the water and grabbing a towel.

Willy danced about the bathroom to the music in his head, somehow toweling himself off as he did so. How he avoided slipping and falling on the tile floor will remain a mystery.

"Good morning staaaarshiiiiine, you lead us aloooooong..." Towel towel towel. "My love and me as we siiing...our early morning singing song!" Towel towel towel. He began to dress, bobbing in time to the imaginary music.

"My goodness, you are looking stunning today if I do say so," he paused his music and examined himself in the mirror. Willy picked up a comb and groomed the mess of hair upon his head. He continued to hum along as he did so, and when he had finished, he set the comb down and gave a bright smile to his reflection.

"Stunning indeed."

"Ew." Sydney stared at herself in the mirror, a look of apparent disgust upon her face. She had pulled her long red hair into a tight knot at the base of her neck, the way she did at the bakery every day she worked there. The only thing she did different today was put on a light layer of makeup - something she never did.

There was something Sydney found inherently discomfiting about working closely with Mr. Willy Wonka. There was an air of mystery about him that she found uncomfortable.

_He's quite a nice looking fellow, too,_ she thought. _Extremely well-dressed. Always a good thing._

"Well..." Sydney sighed, staring herself down, "let's do this." She retreated from her bathroom and gathered up her necessities for the day - a jacket, lunch, and her bag. She was almost embarassed - she had put makeup in her bag, just in case.


	5. Like Clockwork

_Wow. Just wow. I post what I feel is the weakest writing of my life and I get good reviews. I love you guys. Reading reviews just absolutely makes my day. I get all squealy and excited. Uh. Yes. Well, it's what you've been looking forward to - time for Sydney to start actually WORKING. Sorta. Also, I want to thank my wonderful friend and constant reviewer Wicked Seraphina for all her encouragement. Welp, heeeere we go!_

**Chapter 5 - Like Clockwork**

Sydney shuffled down the street, her jacket wrapped tightly around her. The morning air was cold, and so was she. She did not shuffle quickly, but took her time. After all, it was only 8:15, and she didn't have to be there until 8:30. She lived only a ten minute walk away from Cherry Street, which was quite convenient in her view.

Sydney felt ready, despite the fact that she hadn't a clue as to what she was going to be doing. Wonka said she would be making candy.

"Delightfully vague," she muttered, shivering slightly. She glanced down at her wristwatch. 8:18. Not bad. She paused on the sidewalk and pulled a compact from her bag. Flipping it open, she immediately frowned at the sight of her reflection. Her eyeliner had smudged slightly.

Sydney lifted a hand to take care of the smudge then sighed. She never had this problem with anything.

_I'm just trying to look professional,_ she argued with herself. _Yes.__Professional._ As long as she kept convincing herself that, there would be no problem.

Syd snapped the compact closed and dropped it back into her bag. She glanced at her watch one more time. 8:20. Time to get a move on.

-------------

Willy Wonka's candy store ran like clockwork. Every morning at exactly 8:30, exactly thirty employees would file into the store simply to start the day. Sixteen would be in charge of the back room, where they would sort the candy that was produced by the machines into boxes to be shipped out all over the world or into baskets that would be sold at the store, then oversee the machines in their production. Six would be in customer service, where they would take orders from afar. Another six would work the front lobby, selling candy, stocking the front and directly helping customers.

Finally, a very special pair would work directly with Willy Wonka in the development room. There they would discuss ideas and develop recipes for new types of candy. This particular position was quite prestigious.

Willy Wonka skipped down the steps from his private apartments and inhaled deeply. Though the store always smelled of melting chocolate, the sudden burst when he walked into the main production hall was always a treat. He paused and gazed up at the clock on the wall. 8:27. His employees ought to be arriving shortly. He moseyed towards the swinging doors and through them to the front room, where he flipped on the main lights. The room was almost completely devoid of anything. The day prior was a good business day.

Willy waited for two more minutes, rocking back and forth and humming his song from before. He considered for almost thirty seconds if hiring Sydney for that particular position was a good idea. The chocolatier was almost taken aback. He rarely, if ever, second guessed himself. Why today?

Before he had a chance to ponder this fact further, there was a little click and a twinkle as the door was unlocked and opened. Joe removed his hat as he stepped into the store.

"Good morning, Mr. Wonka," he said politely.

"Good morning, Joe," Willy replied, his mouth widening into a smile. "How is the wife?"

"She's doing well. Working diligently with my daughter about the upcoming wedding," Joe answered with a big grin. "You ought to be getting an invitation soon, sir."

"I will certainly to my best to attend then," Wonka said, inwardly cringing. Weddings were the worst. So many people giving hugs and just being all touchy feely. He would make small-talk, but the moment someone tried to touch him other than a handshake was too much.

Thankfully, before awkwardness set in, employees began to file into the room. Willy always greeted each and every one of them by their first names, but they always called him Mr. Wonka. He didn't mind. He preferred it that way.

"Good morning, Gladys." (Good morning, Mr. Wonka.)

"Good morning, Ben." (Good morning, Mr. Wonka.)

"Good morning, Pietr." (Gut mornink, Meester Vonka.)

And so on.

-------------

Sydney gazed up at the sign in front of the shop and gave a faint smile. The excitement that had eluded her before suddenly began to well up inside of her. She gave a deep breath and pulled the door open, stepping inside.

"Good morning, Miss Philips," the familiar voice greeted her. She stopped in the doorway, gazing around at the thirty people that stood in the front room.

"Um..good morning, everybody," Sydney said with a sheepish grin.

When Sydney's eyes met Willy's, the chocolatier paused everything and held her gaze for merely a fraction of a second. It was nothing that was noticible by anyone except for him.

"Well everyone, hop to. You all have your designations for the day," Willy announced. Simultaneously, the entire population of the room shifted and people left. One employee though, a short, younger looking woman, stood next to Wonka, her hands behind her back.

"Miss Philips, you will be working with Sera and myself in the development room. It will be explained further at a later time. However, you must receive the official tour of the shop," Willy said very quickly, breaking eye contact and nervously glancing towards the floor. Without missing a beat, he whispered something to the woman standing next to him, who nodded and walked into the back room and out of sight. Wonka spun around on his shiny heels and began to walk away.

"Come along, far too much to see!" he called for Sydney to follow.


End file.
